[Brian317]

Hey All,

So I do not have any photo at this time (attempting to find charger for the good camera), I will try to get a few photos, but anywho !

...One of my F/S leucs (around 11-12 months) seems skinny to me, or maybe I'm just paranoid. He (and I say he bc he is about the same size as my male, and my females are HUGE, so assuming he is a male) just seems not as "fat as the others". He has a nice belly, so that makes me think "oh he is just fine", but when I look at him from above, he looks skinny as he is more fatty on the belly rather than plump on the sides. You cannot see any spine area/ribs/ect, but has a more pronounced sacral hump than my other leucs. I hear the back leg area is a good indicator of skinny/healthy frog and they are comparable to my other leucs...

He has been fecal tested a few months back healthy, no signs of "bullying", although he has always been the runt since I first got them. He is very bold, always out with the others and eats very very well. Fruit flies and springs. Supplements include staple Replashy Cal plus, SuperPig once a week, and Rep-Cal/Herpvitative(?) every now and then. He is in a 55 gallon viv with 3 other F/S Leucs.

I know this thread is pretty much worthless without photos, but maybe you can just tell by the description....i just wish i could find my camera charger

Any and all help is appreciated. I hope I'm just being over-paranoid, he acts just fine, just looks small at times.

Thanks for any help given !

EDIT: Ah HA ! Found my camera charger!! ...although they will be all tucked in for the night by the time it charged. I will snap photos tomorrow and post.

 

[Brian317]

Alright, here are some photos. Hopefully this helps....btw the first photo is one of the best shots I've got of the Leucs ! haha

Sorry, the last one kinda sucks ! Last one I got b4 the battery died again !

 

[frogface]

Well, he's not fat. Can you post him in comparison with other leucs in his tank?

 

[Brian317]

I dont have any pics thus far, I'll have to try tomorrow....but my other leucs are more "round" as seen in this photo:

The leuc in question has a good sized belly, but he isn't "round" like my other ones. He eats like a pig, but isn't as "round". I dont think he is sickly skinny, but he sure is not fat. He seems healthy, showing normal behaviors and interacting well. I dunno. I hope I'm just paranoid and just need to go on a weight gaining program.

 

[jbherpin]

This looks like a frog that has been hungry for a while and just got a good meal. If I am wrong, please forgive me.

Referring to post 2..

JBear

 

[frogface]

I don't think he looks dangerously thin. My Leucs are hogs and seem to lose weight quickly if not fed enough. I'd make sure he's getting enough to eat and keep an eye on him.

Do you know the sexes of the frogs?

 

[Brian317]

This looks like a frog that has been hungry for a while and just got a good meal. If I am wrong, please forgive me.

Referring to post 2..

JBear

He has looked like this for a while now, he eats well, just does not get "round" like the others.....sorry, I'm not sure what exactly your saying, hopefully this response answers it, but he eats just as much as all the others.

No, thank you for the response. All feedback/help is much appreciated

 

[Brian317]

I don't think he looks dangerously thin. My Leucs are hogs and seem to lose weight quickly if not fed enough. I'd make sure he's getting enough to eat and keep an eye on him.

Do you know the sexes of the frogs?

I've been pondering on taking him out and attempting to bulk him up a bit....or I may try to feed in small doses more often. I feed every other day.

Sexes are 1 calling male, 2 possible females (due to overall size) and the smallest I believe would be a male, although no calling yet.

 

[frogface]

The first frog is the small one, right? How about the second picture? Are those the 2 possible females? How does the calling male compare to the possible females?

I have a pair of leucs and my experience is limited to just my observation of them. My female is much larger than my male and much rounder in the belly. Compared to her, he looks almost thin at times.

 

[Brian317]

The first frog is the small one, right? How about the second picture? Are those the 2 possible females? How does the calling male compare to the possible females?

I have a pair of leucs and my experience is limited to just my observation of them. My female is much larger than my male and much rounder in the belly. Compared to her, he looks almost thin at times.

Yes, first photos are the smallest one (possible male). The other photo, the calling male is on top and female is on bottom. You really cannot tell from that photo, but the poss female(s) are quite larger than the calling male and possible smaller male (which are about the same length, but my calling male is "rounder" than my smallest frog, the one in question....

 

[Froggyplush]

looks good compared to the sway back frogs at pet store today now they looked skinny

 

[frogface]

I asked someone smarter than me to look at your thread

 

[Brian317]

looks good compared to the sway back frogs at pet store today now they looked skinny

Thank for the reply. Yeah, I dont think he is fat by any means, but fat does not mean healthy. I dont have any local pet stores with darts, but I've heard some horror stories and I'm glad none of the stores around me carry pets like that.....I would like some additional opinions though...but appreciate the opinions already

 

[Brian317]

I asked someone smarter than me to look at your thread

Thank you. Although you were quite helpful yourself.

 

[jbherpin]

You also have to consider that Dendrobates "wear" thier backbone pretty high and pronounced, particularly in males. The reason I made took the position I did was the bumps and distortions of the midsection. It truly looked like a frog that was very thin for a bit, and suddenly well fed.

In the beggining of my hobbying, I had a hard time culturing sustainable pops due to mite infestations, which then led to small famines of a week drought sometimes. This is not ideal. While, as proven in my case, not fatal in all circumstances, but unfortunately I HAVE seen this body look. Maybe I jumped the gun, and it was consistent angle distortion, but, that is what I saw.

JBear

 

[Brian317]

You also have to consider that Dendrobates "wear thier backbone pretty high and pronounced, particularly in males. The reason I made took the position I did was the bumps and distortions of the midsection. It truly looked like a frog that was very thin for a bit, and suddenly well fed.

In the beggining of my hobbying, I had a hard time culturing sustainable pops due to mite infestations, which them led to small famines of a week drought sometimes. This is not ideal. While, as proven in my case, not fatal in all circumstances, but unfortunately I HAVE seen this body look. Maybe I jumped the gun, and it was consistent angle distortion, but, that is what I saw.

JBear

I understand where you are coming from. I can see how you viewed that from the photos. The backbone and size is an indicator to me that he would be a possible male though. I feed every other day now, but may try to feed everyday, but not necessarily smaller doses, but enough to put some bulk on him. As soon as I dump flies in the viv, he and all the others go at it and he will eat just as much as the others, I've been looking for maybe he is being out competed to the food or bullied out of eating, but that is not the case as he is a very prolific eater, which is a little confusing bc I figured he would not be AS thin....

 

[jbherpin]

I understand where you are coming from. I can see how you viewed that from the photos. The backbone and size is an indicator to me that he would be a possible male though. I feed every other day now, but may try to feed everyday, but not necessarily smaller doses, but enough to put some bulk on him. As soon as I dump flies in the viv, he and all the others go at it and he will eat just as much as the others, I've been looking for maybe he is being out competed to the food or bullied out of eating, but that is not the case as he is a very prolific eater, which is a little confusing bc I figured he would not be AS thin....

In my eperience the females rule the roost. They eat first, they eat the most, and the males are left with clean up. What I do to combat this trend, is a heavy initial feeding, followed about an hour later by a smaller supplemental feeding. Granted this is a bit more time consuming, with a small collection, there is real benefit.

JBear

 

[Brian317]

Very helpful advise. I will try this out. It may be a bit more spread out when I'm at work...maybe heavy feed when I leave and light feed when I return home. Something to consider though. I would just like to see a bit more bulk on this guy. I dont think he is health threatening thin, but would need to build some bulk up. Appreciate all the help

 

[jbherpin]

"He" will put weight back on provided the feedings are regular and timely. I would heavily emphasize the need to make sure supps are not old, and are supplied at proper intervals. This will be a key factor in sustained health. Another factor to consider and a paramount key to success, is giving space and patience. Feed well, use appropriate supps, and at the right intervals, and you should see a complete recovery. Truly, all my best...

JBear

 

[Ed]

Keep in mind that the frog also looks thin when compared to captive frogs which are typically fairly obsese particularly when compared to the wild populations. If you have a good reference picture of them in the wild, it doesn't look unusually thin... Poison Frogs by Lotters et al, I think has some comparision shots that are a good benchmark.

Ed